How do YOU know you have AIDS?

  • *Possible Symptoms*:

-Swollen Lymph nodes
-Frequent Fevers
-Rapid weight loss

-Unexplained fatigue
-Constant diarrhea
-Excessive sweating

-Breathing difficulty
-White spots and sores (in mouth and throat)


-Pneumonia
-Memory loss


-Vision problems
-Red pink purple or brown blotches on one’s skin


  • Because these symptoms are often not related to HIV, it is recommended that a person gets tested for HIV/AIDS at least once a year to prevent the risk of unwillingly infecting others.



What does HIV do to you?


  • HIV weakens the immune system by infecting Helper T Cells, white blood cells that are in charge of coordinating a person's immune response to infection.


HIV_is_bad.jpg
The Role of a Helper T Cell



Opportunistic Infections due to AIDS:

  • Due to the weakening of the immune system, people with AIDS become vulnerable to many diseases
    • These include over 100 germ infections and these can range from mild to severe.
    • Opportunistic infections include pneumonia, tuberculosis, TB, and etc.
    • Recent studies have also shown AIDS to be related to forms of cancer such as Kaposi (usually on skin), Lymphoma (white blood cells), and in women cervical cancer.


Back to Homepage